Secrets of the Worlds
by RoseCrystal
Summary: A Mew submission story. Sometimes, when one makes a mistake you just can't turn back and fix it. Only this time, if the world has made a mistake you do your best to fix it before all that's known is destroyed.
1. prologue

_Prologue_

_(revised)  
_

The first thing that registered in her brain was the little fact that she couldn't breathe. Snapping her eyes open, she looked around, startled. Inky darkness swam before her. So thick was it that it felt as if she could feel its cold, slimy hands ghosting over her. Something akin to panic started to fill her chest. It felt like the darkness was pressing in on her and no matter what she did, air continued;y eluded her lungs.

Faintly, she could hear the sound of harsh breathing, and dazedly realized it was coming from her. Got to get away from here, she thought, have to get away. Pushing her hands in front of her she felt the resistance of rock. Concrete, came the thought absentmindedly, from the...No! Her heart pounded furiously against her chest; she moved her hands, desperately feeling for a weakness so she could push her way out.

Memories flooded her mind and because of her distressed state she didn't realize, until too late, that her hands had found a small break in the rock. Dust and small debris fell onto her, stinging her eyes. A small cry escaped from her throat, and a cough abruptly came out of her as she blinked away the dust and tears from her eyes. Her ears started to ring from the sound after so much silence.

Tentatively, she brushed her fingers against the same place it broke, before it gave away once more. This time she kept her eyes shut. With a grunt she heaved against the rocks and pressed her lips together, determined to get away from this dark place. A sharp crack was her only warning as she quickly brought her other arm across her face. Rocks hitting against her and the ground made dull thuds. She couldn't help the whimpers that escaped her each time sharp edges of rocks cut her arm, but at least her face was protected from the worst.

As soon as everything settled, she hesitantly moved her arm. Small pieces of jagged concrete rolled off her. She stilled. She could feel warmth across her face; red painted her lids.

She shifted her legs carefully, thankful that they weren't hurt too much. Just scratches and bruises, she thought, and shook of more of the debris. She opened her eyes and squinted before sitting up carefully. Poking her head out into the open air, she took deep, filling breaths. The hole was bigger than she thought, but what shocked her the most was the sight that met her. What were once tall, beautiful buildings were nothing but piles of rubble. At every turn she saw the town she once knew, destroyed. Distantly, she could her the faint sounds of groaning and the crying of children. What happened?

Brown dusty- things, she couldn't think of what else to call them, were moving and a stab of fear entered her heart. As a call came from them she sighed in relief. They must have been survivors like herself. Looking down at herself, she realized that she too, looked like them. As if they had all rolled in dust and added small rocks for decoration.

Pulling herself away from the dark place she was in, she found a dusty grocery bag by her shoe and all thoughts fled from her. If one could see her, they would have thought she had been painted with white paint instead of the chalky dust that covered her. Her heart squeezed with agony as a small thought entered her, then another, and then many more. Where were her parents? Her little brother? Were they all right? What about her friends? But the one thought that stood out the most was, what happened? Why? How? All of these swirled around her head. Feeling slightly nauseated, she pulled hers knees close to her and wept.

* * *

Okay this is an entry for ZephyrFiction's 'Greatest Mew Submission Story'. Late as this is, but at least I have something ne? Also I need three OC's. Please sumbit your own and I will do my best to choose.  
Okay, I want to know everything about your character. His/Her personality, random facts as well like favorite foods, music, etc. Does he/she play

**OC'S NEEDED PLEASE!!!**

sports or music or sumthin? Any relatives/siblings (same thing right?) Looks. What he/she wears normally everyday, etc.  
Now for mew stuff:  
Looks.  
outfit  
name(meaning as well just because i love that kind of stuff)  
weapon  
attack name  
weakness and strengths

I'll be asking further info if needed.

AN#2 Tell me as much info about your oc's personalities and looks. Also, some oc's will not be mews. But please describe your oc's mew form/attacks/names of said things/EVERYTHING! Unless your oc's have families I will use 'em too.

Also, I'd like to know how your oc's would react to having themselves injured/having family-friends killed.


	2. A What?

Chapter 2

_(Edited)_

Heaving great sobs, the events of today came crashing down once more. All she was doing was walking home from a trip to the groceries for her family before it hit. Then the dark place she woke up in…She gave a shudder as she remembered the feel of the darkness closing in on her.

With all that was going through her mind, the girl didn't notice the gravel, five feet away from her, move. However, she did notice a great shout of triumph as well as a gray fist pumping into the air.

Wide-eyed, the girl stared. There is such a thing as a zombie, she thought in shock, Grandma, you were right! Two months ago she had spent a week at her grandparent's house. A particularly interesting week. Her grandma was quite a superstitious person, therefore gave the girl lessons on how to survive the unnatural of the world.

At last the blocks of concrete heaved upwards, turning to the side and out popped a dusty head of hair. "I'm free!"

The girl blinked. Of course that would be something a monster would say right? To be free and rule the world? That was not reassuring at all. Perhaps if she just stayed quiet she would not be noticed. With all the dust, rocks, and pieces of other building material, she did not know, she practically looked like part of the ground!

A cough interrupted her thoughts, and she couldn't help but squeak as the head turned to her. The zombie had green eyes, she thought faintly. Well, technically dark green eyes, but who really cares when one is supposedly about to die?

A smile broke across his zombie-like face, and to her, it looked quite evil. The zombie gave his head a quick shake and dirt flew out in all directions. With a grunt, he dragged out the rest of his body out of the ground below, gray and gritty.

She trembled. Was this it?

Those green eyes immediately showed concern. "Hey, are you okay?"

Its voice is…normal? Was the next coherent thought she could get out. Its voice sounded like any other human being's.

He seemed to realize her state of being and decided to take another approach. "The name's Peter Mikes, thanks to you, I was able to get out of there," he indicated with a jerk of his head to the location of the pit he had previously been in. A slight shudder passed him before he stilled.

Was that a good or bad thing? She decided to go with good. He seemed kind of nice, for a zombie that is.

"Got a name?" he asked.

She nodded hesitantly. "Kiri," And she offered no more. Perhaps if she gave her full name he might, just might, use it to control her…

"Alright, Kiri-san, I'm going to find out what just happened. Do you have a place to stay?"

The last sentence brought tears to her eyes as she thought about her family again.

Peter, realizing that he just said something wrong, went over to her. "Hey, it's okay. I'm sorry I said that so don't cry, alright?" He placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. "Look, I don't know what happened, but I promise everything's going to be okay,"

Kiri nodded with a sniff, trying her best to wipe away her tears, although not exactly succeeding considering how dirty her sleeve is. This monster did not seem so bad at all. On another note, his hand felt warm…Like her mom's hand. "Thanks Peter-Zombie-san!"

Peter smiled before he realized what she just said. A Zombie? With a shrug he let it go. "Come on; let's find a place where we can stay…" He trailed off as he looked around. "Hopefully," Peter offered his hand to her.

Kiri took one last look around with another sniff and accepted his hand.

Snot and dirt, Peter thought with a grimace as he hauled the little girl up, lovely. "So, Kiri-san, can I call you Kiri-chan?" The two slowly started moving forward.

At this she nodded all the while trying to avoid the debris in her way as she walked.

"Okay, Kiri-chan, how old are you?" Peter asked conversationally.

"Eleven," She whispered.

"Eleven?" he echoed. "I see,"

"How old are you?" Kiri asked, looking up at him.

"Let's see, I should be eighteen now,"

"Should be?" Kiri did not know that zombies had ages. Did they have birthdays too? She asked him that, and he responded with a laugh.

"Everyone celebrates their birthday, who doesn't?"

Kiri responded by looking down, hiding a blush.

They continued walking-or more like stumbling and climbing for Kiri, trying to find a place to stay.

About fifteen yards away the two could hear an angry voice with a snap to it. Upon closer inspection, they spotted a tall girl who seemed to be strangling her pink cell phone. It looked to be okay but from the way the girl was acting, it obviously was not working at the moment.

Peter was surprised to find the lamp post, the girl stood beside, was still standing.

With an angry huff, the girl put away her cell phone into her bag. "Damnit!" she cried before noticing the two of them.

Kiri was gaping. Why was this pretty girl not covered in dust like the rest of them? Perhaps she had super powers that made all dirt not touch her.

Peter, on the other hand, was thinking something else. How did she avoid the "earthquake" as he had dubbed it. So he did the only thing he could do at the moment. He stuck out his free hand with a smile. "Hi," he said.

"What do you want?" she snapped, avoiding his…filthy hand.

"How are you not covered in dust?" Peter countered with a frown.

"I used my head,"

Peter ignored the obvious insult, but before he could voice another thing out, Kiri spoke up.

"You're pretty. What's your name?"

The girl, taken-aback for a moment, looked Kiri over with thoughtful, brown eyes. After a moment she appeared satisfied and responded back, flipping her long, wavy brown hair behind her. "My name is Talia Megumi," she said grandly. "Don't say a word about it,"

"What a pretty name," Kiri breathed, despite the warning. She looked up at Peter, who in turn looked down at her.

"It sure is," he agreed easily.

"How old are you Megumi-san?" Kiri asked with child-like innocence, regardless of the way the world was at the moment.

Megumi paused. "Fourteen," she answered albeit hesitantly.

Peter couldn't help but blink at that. Fourteen? She seemed older somehow. Perhaps it was the way she held herself. With the deep, brown eyes that held pride (or smugness) from the way she escaped the worst of this disaster, and the way she held her head up.

"I'm Kiri and I'm eleven. Do you know what happened? Oh, and this is Peter," she added. Peter could see that Kiri was starting to feel a lot better now.

"I see," Talia acknowledged with glittering eyes. "Although I can't quite tell his age…"

Peter could hear the undertones of that last statement but did not take the bait. Instead he smiled. "You're going to have to guess,"

Talia smirked then sank down a bit to Kiri's eye level, noticing the way she held onto the boy's hand. Her face transformed into one of seriousness. "Unfortunately, I do not know what happened, but I'd like to find out," As she said this, she looked over the little girl's head and met Peter's dark green eyes in a silent question. To this he shook his head. Looking back into Kiri's eyes, she said, "Kiri-chan, please call me Talia, okay?"

The little girl nodded.

"Kiri-chan," The boy questioned. "Do you know where your house is?" Having asked this he could feel the older girl's eyes boring into him as if to say, 'You didn't ask that earlier?' Obviously, she had worked out that they were not siblings.

Kiri nodded and pointed with her free hand across the way they came. Talia looked to where the girl was pointing and met the boy's eyes. It did not look very good at all for Kiri.

"Would you like to stay at my place for a bit?" The older girl offered as she rose back up to her full height.

"I'm not sure--"

"My place is just around this corner. We can get water and a bit of food, perhaps see if we can figure out how to go about this problem,"

"Sounds like a good idea," Peter agreed. "I want to know if there is anyone else who is injured, or anything, around here too,"

Talia nodded in agreement before a look of surprise quickly flitted across her face and she quickly dug out her cell phone. Flipping it open, she moved her fingers across the keypad before shutting it closed, returning it back into her bag. "Alright, my sister just text me saying she and her fiancé are a bit shaken up, but they'll be expecting us." she announced. "You guys ready to go?"

"What about my family?" Kiri asked.

"They'll be fine." Peter assured her. "I just know it,"

"Okay," the little girl whispered.

The three of them (Talia) hurriedly tried to get to her place while Kiri and Peter, who was helping the girl, catch up to the taller one. It most certainly was not easy for the younger one to maneuver around the debris. And the dust was not making matters any easier. Every step made dust and dirt fly into their faces. And having to cough instead of breath normally the whole way was making them miserable.

Although Talia, on the other hand, seemed to be just fine. In fact, every step she took was light and graceful. Not a stir of dust rose.

Kiri was very much in awe of her. Where did she come from? That thought continually repeated each time she looked at the other girl.

"We're here," Talia declared and Kiri, realizing that they had stopped, looked around.

The place looked simple enough, just a small, apartment-like house. Although the yard and the roof looked worse for where. A dried up, dead looking tree littered the front, and it looked near impossible to get through. It was huge! Most of the tiles of the roof were on the ground, shattered, while the rest of them were just barely hanging on.

"Be careful," Peter warned. "It looks dangerous,"

Talia nodded. On the outside she looked calm, but her eyes said otherwise. With bits of fear and worry swirling in her eyes, she carefully picked her way through the dead and dry branches, breaking off the smaller bits to make it a bit easier to cross through.

A small gasp made her pause and she looked around.

"Watch out!"

Talia barely had time to look up before a bright light consumed her.

* * *

_Alright, back from my bro's tournaments! I have finally edited this rushed little piece...I'm so tired!_

_Anyway terribly sorry Old Fashioned-girl22 for mixing up your OC's name..._

_I'll be using the American way of introducing names just so nobody will get confused. Which mean first name then last name.  
_


	3. Where am I?

**Secrets of the World**

_Chapter 3 (edited)_

Keiichiro walked soundlessly down the halls. So much had happened in such a short amount of time that he barely could keep up. Series of events happening one after the other. He did not like where the situation was headed. He had a horrible feeling, and he was worried. Very worried.

A slight groan from the end of the hall made the chef run into the room the groan oriented from. What he saw made him sigh in relief as he saw what looked to be like the boy waking up, until something caught his eye.

He rushed to bed in front of him, "Ryou!" He shook the boy gently in front of him. A nightmare, it seemed to him, was plaguing the boy and wounds started appearing on his face, arms, and neck. Not only that but Ryou's breathing was starting to turn frantic and harsh.

What is going on here? What's happening? Panic sent those thoughts racing across his mind. Things were going so well. But something had hit them all hard and everything good had started spiraling down to bad. Pushing those thoughts firmly into a corner of his mind, Keiichiro turned his attention to Ryou. He moved his hand to the boy's forehead before taking it back in surprise. He furrowed his brows. The boy was burning up. Suddenly, striking blue eyes snapped open.

"Ryou?" he whispered, but was met with a pained moan escaping the boy's lips. He moved sluggishly, twisting his head back and forth.

Keiichiro noticed that his eyes, though open, were glazed over in pain and sleep. Before the chef could do anything a flash of pain raced down his arm and he bit back a startled cry. Looking down, he saw blood dripping down his arm on to the sheets below. But it was not the blood that concerned him. What he saw were several slash marks, red and jagged.

He glanced back at Ryou and noticed the blood on his hands. Brown eyes widened in shock. Ryou's finger nails were changing into razor-sharp claws. A growl passed the boy's lips and clenching his fists, he curled into a tight ball.

Suddenly his whole being started to glow. The shape of Ryou started to shrink and take the form of a cat before glowing brighter and gradually returning back to normal size. The glow subsided and Ryou lay panting, but Keiichiro was alarmed to see the many wounds that appeared on the boy. More so than a few minutes ago.

When the brunette looked back he saw cerulean eyes staring back at him.

"What just happened?" Ryou croaked out., his voice hoarse.

Keiichiro shook his head. "I don't know, but I think it's stopped,"

A ring interrupted them and the chef reached into his pocket and flipped out his cell phone. He gave a puzzled glance at the screen but answered. "Hello?"

"H…Help please…"

He recognized that voice. It was Zakuro's, but why would she call, especially asking for help? She was a strong girl who was very independent. But her voice…

"Zakuro, what's wrong? Are you alright?"

"…" A pained silence met his ear before he heard a sharp intake of breath. "Something's wrong. Injuries are suddenly appearing on people. Some even dropping dead. And I too…"

A cold feeling started to grow inside him.

"It's almost like…"

A load crash and wails of alarms followed by several honks of cars interrupted their conversation.

Keiichiro could barely hear the rest of what she said but he caught the next few words over the noise.

"…Find…others…Ic…go…"

It was vague but he pieced them together. "What's wrong? What about Ichigo?"

She never got to finish her sentence.

"Zakuro? Zakuro!"

The line went dead.

xXx

Ryou heard everything but could hardly think. Sleep was calling to him, to escape the pain. His eyelids were getting heavy. Maybe if he went with it he would wake up later as if this was all a bad dream. Yes, that is right. This was all just a bad dream and when he would wake, everything would be back to normal.

xXx

"Hey, what just happened?"

Talia looked up from her crouched position on the ground, having no idea how she got like that. Furrowing her brows she turned her thoughts back to what happened moments ago. She could remember walking up to her house and moving around the thick branches of the dead tree that lay in front of her yard. But that light…She could not put a finger on that feeling she had felt; it almost felt warm yet… It was almost like her whole self felt stronger with…a combined force.

But what bothered her the most was that the same thing happened to her earlier. Everyone around her was affected by the mysterious earthquake, except herself. She was untouched by the concrete and dust that fell around her, except for the agonized screams of fear and pain...But those sounds lasted a few seconds before utter silence took over. She could not bring herself to think about the people who got crushed underneath.

There was something else as well. Why could she not bring herself to move when that tile fell? Always, during any situation, she would react. This time, it was if a case of sluggishness took over her.

"You okay?" Talia looked up to see the concerned face of Peter and Kiri hovering over the branches. She gave a quick nod and let her eyes sweep around her. Broken pieces of tile lay across her feet.

"Watch you step," she warned, which Peter acknowledged.

"I'm going to pass Kiri over to you all right?"

"Sure, just let me move these things a bit," Talia moved quickly, nudging the sharp pieces of the tile over to the side with her feet and breaking off the branches closer to her to make more room for them.

"You ready?" he called.

"Yep," Faintly, she could hear Peter say to Kiri to cover her face with her arms before hoisting her over the wall of dry branches. Rustling and creaking could be heard as Kiri came over to her side.

"Do you got her?" Peter asked with a slight strain in his voice. Carrying her over and avoiding getting poked in the eye was a little hard when he could not see.

Talia had her arms around the little girls waist. "You can let go now. I got her," With that all of Kiri's weight was transferred to her.

Kiri gave the older girl a smile when her feet touched the ground and moved back to get out of the way and make more room.

"I'm coming through now," Snaps and more rustling could be heard, and soon, Peter popped through, shaking off little bits of twigs in his hair.

"Ready?" Talia asked, and both said yes.

xXx

Three sharp knocks on the door followed by a little shuffling and a, "I'll get it," revealed to the three an anxious looking couple.

"Talia!" The woman exclaimed, recognizing her. Her light blue eyes went over to the rest of the companions in slight puzzlement. "Your friends, right?"

"Yep, Monica, this is Kiri and Peter," she introduced. "Guys, this is my sister, Monica and--"

"My fiancé," the older sister giggled.

Talia rolled her eyes at that and said, "The fiance, Sean,"

Sean lifted a hand in a small wave and an easy smile as Kiri gave a shy wave back, and Peter nodded in acknowledgment.

"Come in, guys, we have water inside, and I'd like to know what happened out there," Sean said.

"We'd like to know ourselves," Peter said grimly. "But first, let's move away from this tree shall we? It's kinda creepy the way its arms look like it's trying to trap us so it can grab us…" He inched closer to Kiri, taking her hand and giving the tree a weary glance.

"Now that I look at it from this angle, it does look that way, ne?" Talia remarked. "The branches of the tree monster, and it's many withered fingers, just trying to reach out and snag whatever walked into its clever trap. Hear how the tree monster crows in delight at its catch going, _rustle rustle_, but what it's actually saying is," Talia lowered her voice into a scratchy whisper. "_Look at these tasty morsels,"_

Kiri whimpered and clung to Peter as he grabbed her in a hug, shivering. Was it just him, or was it starting to get slightly harder to breathe?

Talia, amused at this little sight, continued.

"_See how they cling to each other in fear. Ah, fear, such a wonderful scent! This would be a very delicious meal indeed. Eh hehehe,"_

"Alright, that's enough," Monica commanded, snapping her little sister out of her…fun.

"Aw, come on, why do you always ruin good and harmless fun?"

"I think you were enjoying that a little too much," Sean muttered then snorted. "Harmless fun? Look at those two," he scoffed, pointing.

Peter flushed in embarrassment and grinned sheepishly. Kiri, on the other hand, had a tight grip on the boy, and her eyes shown with fright.

"Scary," she whispered.

"That she is, Kiri, that she is," Peter said agreeing to a different thing. Holding onto Kiri, the two walked forward, passed the smirking Talia.

"_I'm coming for you," _was the cold whisper from behind and Peter felt a dry and rough touch upon his neck. With a shiver he looked behind him. Dread filled him when he saw a branch of the tree inches away from his face. A small tug turned his attention away and he looked down to see Kiri pointing mutely, back the way the branch was in.

"Talia, cut it out," Monica snickered.

Dropping the branch, Talia pouted. "Fine,"

Peter saw, to his added embarrassment, the amusement glittering in Sean and Monica's eyes. He already knew what was showing through Talia's eyes without looking, no problem.

xXx

Upon entering the house, Kiri could see white-washed walls and calming, blue carpet and couches, which lay facing the biggest television set she had ever encountered on the opposite wall. In the center of it all hung a wooden fan with crystal lights.

"Pretty!" Kiri breathed.

A whistle followed after her statement. "Yeah, nice place you got here, Talia and folks,"

"Heh, thanks," Sean smiled with an easy smile.

"Um, Sean," interrupted Monica, nervously.

He turned to her, noting the hint of alarm in her voice.

"Who is…she?" She pointed.

All five of them turned to see a girl with the strangest looking hair they have ever seen, standing in the middle entrance of the kitchen. Cobra-like flaps (the only way to explain it) light brown in color, framed her pale face. Pale lids revealed a golden brown eye color.

"Uh, can we help you?" Asked Monica.

The mysterious girl pushed her big, round glasses back and blinked "Where am I?"

* * *

_Huh, wow. I'm back. _

_To ZephyrFiction: Hope I'm not late or anything...Also I forgot to mention that I am using Tomahawk 3.0's oc._

_I will be taking no more OCs._

_This time I hope I can get this story done. Took me awhile to realize that writing can be a very good outlet...  
_


	4. Blue Light and Ice

_**Secrets of the World**_

_Chapter 3 (Edited)_

"Sometimes, I worry what our world is coming to," Sean muttered. "I mean, come on. A different dimension? Are you sure? Because last I checked, aliens were taking over the world,"

"Tokyo," Talia coughed from behind him.

"Same thing,"

"Not really,"

"How can we be sure that you, yourself, aren't an alien?," Sean indicated to the hair.

The mysterious girl shrank back from his pointing finger.

"Now you've done it," Talia shoved Sean away, who protested with a "Hey!"

"Don't you have any respect for your elders?" he grumbled, backing away.

"I can please only one person a day, Sean. Today is not your day, and tomorrow is definitely not looking good either... It just takes way to much energy!" Talia complained then turned her attention back to girl seated upon the blue couch. "So--"

"I just have one more question for you there. And please, answer honestly. Tell me, as an outsider, what do you think of the human race?"

Turning her head, the flaps of hair swayed to the side as she sniffed, saying, "I don't like it when people make fun of me,"

"Viper, right?" Talia cut in.

The pale girl glanced at her, giving a slight nod.

"You said you somehow got here by a...portal, right?"

"Yeah, but it was an accident though," Viper said quietly, furrowing her brow. "I don't quite know what had happened, but a blue light suddenly appeared... It changed things."

xXx

"Ryou! Ryou!"

Floating. He felt like he was floating from the bottom of the ocean, slowly making his way up to the light. Muffled words could barely make their way to his ears. Why would his eyes not open like he wanted them to? He could only manage to open them by slits.

"Please,"

Please what? Air could hardly make it into his lungs; he just felt so tired. Wanting to see, he moved his head around sluggishly.

"Something is very wrong!"

Was there? Then what was wrong? He could still see the light, though barely. Stray thoughts occasionally made their way through. Like bubbles slowly rising to the surface. Where was Keiichiro? Was there an accident?

"...Ichigo...earthquake"

Those words were like getting awaken by ice water getting poured upon the head, and bright blue eyes snapped open. He could think crystal clear now and worried thoughts whipped past. Where was he? The earthquake! What happened to Ichigo? Was she hurt?

The light started to take on a dark blue tint now that he forced himself forward. Just a little closer. He had to get out of here! His body could hardly respond to his brain as it kept telling it to move. Focusing on his arm, Ryou reached out above him. Painfully slowly, he outstretched his hand to the crystal blue light.

Just a little more.

Almost there!

His finger tips hit the light, only...the light was solid? Ice! He could see better now. As soon as hit hands had touched the ice a faint, white light illuminated the object. Puzzled, he brought himself closer.

More thoughts hit him. Why was it that he could breathe more easily now? Was he not underwater? And why was the ice not cold? It felt strangely warm. Experimentally, he took his hands away and could feel the warmth and air seep away. Quickly, he moved his hands back to the ice.

"Everyone..."

That was Keiichiro's voice, he recognized now, but where was the man? Ryou could hear the worry that rang in his voice, could feel the water around him, and yet not. It was like it was there, but not there at all. He could feel the substance of the water, but not its...wetness? Yes. He could also feel its icy coldness pressing all around him except the ice itself, which kept him from freezing. Ryou started to feel himself falling to sluggishness again. With his hands just touching the ice, Ryou realized that it was staring to not be enough.

Pressing himself close to the warmth of the ice, he tried not to panic.

Ting!

Ryou blinked. He could have sworn that sound came from inside. Turning to look into the ice, he squinted. Red. He could see a piece of pink and red. Raising himself higher, he could still see the same colors 'till he had reached a point where it was much warmer. A certain spot that radiated more heat just seemed to call out to him; make him yearn for something more than anything he ever wanted. So suddenly did it call that he did not even question it. It just felt so real, this feeling.

Looking even harder, he saw a hint of gold. With his cheek pressed up against the ice he did his best to see even more through the thickness of the ice. Suddenly, he gasped and started pounding his fist against the ice, trying to break it.

Before he knew it, air started flooding his lungs and he could breathe normally again. His body carried out the demands he wanted easily too.  
He took a deep breath, driving as much strength as possible into his arm. Ryou did not even blink, nor could he even feel the pain when his fist hit the barrier. With a yell he punched again and again, her name on his lips.

"Ichigo!"

xXx

"I can't say that I understand, but you're saying that a certain stone, along with the thought and memory of a place wanted, is needed to work this portal?"

"Yes," Viper acknowledged, fingering the rims of her glasses.

"But this blue light suddenly appeared, making the whole portal itself...blue,"

"It sounds strange, I know, but I can not think of another way to put it,"

"It's alright," Peter said. "It's pretty much going to be the same way of trying to explain what just happened earlier,"

"I saw it,"

"Saw it?" Talia echoed.

Viper nodded. "The portal is like a looking glass once one gets close to the destination desired. No one can see the portal or the person inside, but the one inside the portal itself can see outside,"

"Interesting," Peter said, putting a hand to his chin.

"Do you? Do you really?" Viper asked, clutching her glass cup of water. The ice hitting the glass emitted a _chink_-like sound.

"It's not too hard to believe, you know," he glanced at Talia and then Kiri, who was doing her best to follow the conversation in vain. Confusion was written all over her small face. Then again, Peter noticed as he glanced around the room, it was all over Sean and Monica's faces as well.

"From what I've heard, when we first moved here a while ago, there were five girls with powers called the Mew Mews. People everywhere couldn't stop talking about them, and the disaster, that would have befallen them had those girls not stepped in to help, was averted," Talia quoted. "But what was even more odd was that everyone kept saying that it was Aliens that almost destroyed Tokyo..." She said, pondering.

"We're not saying it's you, Viper, but," He looked at the one standing beside him. "What you heard is true, Talia. I was here in Tokyo when that happened since my family moved here at that time. My parents jobs, you see," Peter explained.

"Of course," Viper said.

"I have looked into that incident. I mean, how could I not? It was everywhere! Their pictures and videos showed me their deeds, their fights against the Aliens, and everything that was said to be done after the near disaster. It didn't seem real to me though. It all just seemed like it was for a movie or something,"

"Anyway, Viper, we're just saying that you and portals is not much of a big surprise to us," Peter glanced around. "Or just me, considering the situation. Although this still doesn't get us any closer to finding out what had happened out there,"

"We can only guess," Talia agreed. "Unless we go out there and find out for ourselves,"

"I'm sure many others out there are doing just that, Talia," Monica said guardedly. "Now, I've got some refreshments on the table so let's discuss things there. Viper, your welcome to join us as well,"

"Thank you," the other-world girl said with a smile.

"Sounds like a great idea," Sean said, giving his fiance a kiss on the cheek and moving into the dining area.

"Thank you for doing this Mr. err..." Peter trailed off, hesitating as he followed the older man to the other room.

"Boleihue, and it's no a problem at all," Sean assured him.

"This way please," Monica said. leading everyone to the the dining area.

Boleihue? Peter wondered. What type of last name was that?

xXx

"Thank goodness. You're awake,"

Ryou looked around confusedly. Was he not under water with...

Grasping Keiichiro's arm, he demanded, "Is Ichigo alri--" He broke off with a cough. His throat hurt horribly. He brought his arm up with a wince and noticed the bandages around both arms and his neck. "What happened?" he managed to mouth out.

The brunette shook his head, and the boy could see the worry tinged upon his forehead. "I'll explain what I can to you after you drink this,"

Ryou could only bring himself to nod as Keiichiro poured out some tea into a cup. From the scent, Ryou recognized it to be chamomile tinged with a slight spicy smell. The older man turned back to him and handed the cup, helping him to grasp it.

As he brought the cup to his lips, he realized that his hands were shaking. Closing his eyes, he savored the warmth and taste of the tea. The tea was perfect in temperature, not too hot and not too cooled off either.

"Ginger and marsh mellow root to help clear out your throat and relieve any soreness, plus a drop of honey not only to help calm but to sweeten. Of course, by the scent you can identify the chamomile,"

"Thank you," The boy whispered, handing the tea back to him. Silently he knew, somehow, that whatever had just happened was more than just a dream. The strong feelings still lingered within him.

"Don't push yourself to hard," Keiichiro warned gently. "From what I've gathered people everywhere have been injured not only from this...earthquake, but from wounds that started to show up just like yours had. Zakuro had said on the phone that some people have been dropping dead, and I've also gotten a call from Retasu saying that before the wounds and the death a blue light would appear,"

Ryou sucked in a breath. "Retasu--"

"Is also hurt as well, I'm afraid. The only difference between the humans and you and the girls, is that you all had transformed. You into Alto and the girls into mew form. But... I'm worried. I severely hope the girls are okay,"

Ryou's eyes immediately took on a calculating look. "It couldn't be... Deep blue again?"

"I've thought of that, but the aliens had confirmed that Masaya really did kill Deep Blue at that time,"

"That time," The blond placed one hand to his chin and brought the other arm up for examination. "My wounds are exactly as they were,"

"The whole destruction is very similar," Keiichiro agreed.

The boy looked up. "And the aliens?"

"We have never received any form of contact since that time,"

"I see,"

The older man cleared his throat and got up, clearing the things he used to make the tea. "I'll head downstairs to check up on the status again. It's an absolute mess out there so it's hard to confirm if our theories are correct. For now just rest. I'll be leaving the tea and the bandages with you,"

Ryou nodded and lay back down slowly so as to not trigger any unnecessary pain. The door shut quietly behind the chef, and the boy was left with his thoughts.

Hardly four months of peace and normalcy had gone by, and already there was something threatening to destroy the world again.

* * *

_Quick A/N: Boleihue is pronounced much like you you think it does. Bow-lay-hue. (^_^)v_


	5. Lies and Data

**Secrets of the World**

_Chapter 5_

"Alright, let's get going,"

The scrape of chairs and clinking of utensils could be heard from the dining area of the Boleihue's house and soon the sounds settled into those of quiet voices before getting louder as the three new companions made their way to the entrance way of the house.

Peter turned to the owner's. "Thank you for inviting us to your home,"

"Oh, it's fine," Sean said with a wave of his hand. "Be careful on your way out, okay?"

"Will do, Mr. Bouleihue,"

Sean put forth his hand with a smile. "Just Sean, please. Calling me mister makes me feel old," he joked, and his fiance swatted him.

Viper murmured her thanks as well and stood by the door. Once the door was open, Viper and Peter made their way carefully around the tree branches so as not to get hurt while making room for the other girl.

"I'm going to need a chainsaw or something," Sean observed.

"Oh, Talia?" Monica called. "I'd like to speak with you,"

Viper and Peter met Talia's puzzled glance, but the girl made her way back to her sister. From behind, Talia could see Kiri, still holding her glass of water, standing beside the wall of the hallway. The older girl gave the younger one a reassuring smile and Kiri returned it.

"What is it?"

Monica glanced at the other two companions, that stood outside, carefully. "I don't think you should go,"

"What? Why not?" Talia exclaimed.

"It's just too dangerous, and mom would kill me if you got hurt,"

"You don't know if Mama is still alive," Talia pointed out harshly.

"No, I don't, but at least you are. The people are in shock and would strike out in panic. Not to mention the instability of the land out there. I do not want any of you getting hurt, but you most of all, Talia,"

"I appreciate that you care, but I have to go out there!"

"No, I can not let you do that, I'm sorry, but I'm putting my foot down on this,"

"We all can take of ourselves--"

"I'm sure they can,"

"You don't think I can do it? Come on. Didn't I save myself in that earthquake? Monica, I don't think you get it; I have to go. Why would I be paired with these kids and suddenly be shoved aside when it gets dangerous? Please,"

Monica was silent, considering Talia's plea. Oh, she was sure Mother, if she was still out there, would most certainly kill her and Sean if they were to let Talia go. She rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on. No, this was most certainly for the best, even if Talia would hate her.

"Excuse me?" Kiri's voice rang timidly. The adults looked over at the small child. "I think...Talia-oneechan is very brave," she confessed, turning a slight shade of pink. "And Kiri-chan also thinks Talia-oneechan won't get herself hurt, if Talia's-oneesama is worried about that." She looked to the floor, sheepish. She whispered, "Talia-oneechan would take care of Kiri-chan."

There was silence after this speech, each person taking in what Kiri had said. Talia was the first to recover.

"Right," she said briskly before pausing. Her vision suddenly seemed to waver for a bit. From the other side of the tree, Peter watched her carefully. Viper, herself, seemed to be keeping an eye on her. 'Is something going on here that I don't know?' Suddenly the house seemed to tilt, and Talia blinked rapidly.

"Tal…onee…an?"

Including her hearing was starting to bail on her.

"Talia!"

"Talia-san!"

Those shouts, she most certainly heard clearly and barely registered the crashing sounds of the tree that blocked the way out of the home. Talia could not seem to get her body moving right. It was as if someone pulled the carpet from right under her feet and the firm hold of balance she had was gone with the rug.

Suddenly, she realized what had happened. Talia did her best to fight the wave of nausea that came on and put a hand out the wall to try and steady herself, but she just started to feel worse by the second. "How dare you," she whispered to her sister before the claws of darkness took her in.

xXx

The slight movement of the door caught Keiichiro's attention from the corner of his eye, and he turned to see Ryou sagging against the doorway.

"Ryou!" He exclaimed and immediately got up to help the boy.

"I'm fine," Ryou waved off, "I just need to sit down,"

"You shouldn't be down here. You should be resting," The older man said not unkindly as he helped the boy sit down upon one of the swivel chairs.

"Couldn't sleep," Ryou muttered and Keiichiro made no comment, just brought the boy the rest of the tea and sat down.

"According to the data, the patterns from the energy waves before the earthquake struck are nearly identical to the near destruction when the Aliens and Deep Blue were here." Keiichiro stated, getting straight to the point. "The only difference?"

"The Aliens," Ryou muttered. "They're not here."

"And neither are the girls,"

Ryou's eyes narrowed as he scanned the data running through the screens, and Keiichiro recognized that calculative look in the boy's eyes.

"Something's missing. The one key element that started all of this--"

"The Mew Aqua!"

"Ah," Ryou agreed. "But how? The Mew Aqua is a healing element. There must be something else triggering this,"

Both men turned to the largest screen on the wall. Although most of their cameras were destroyed the could still see the mass of people, screaming in panic, crying in anguish, lost in the midst of what was left of the city.

"I don't know how we can fix this without the Mew Aqua. We gave what we had left to the Aliens,"

"Do you think," Keiichiro said slowly, with a hand to his chin, thinking quickly. "That there could be more? Perhaps like how there are volcanoes scattered across the world, but there is only one source on why they are there,"

"Just as we have been collecting small bits of the Mew aqua we never thought there was a source to it,"

Ryou nodded slowly. "You could be right. We have to look into this. Look for a natural source of an energy with whatever equipment we have left that wasn't destroyed or damaged. If we can do this quickly, then we can save many more of the people,"

Keichiro agreed and suddenly noticed the exhausted look in Ryou's eyes.

"There's so much…" The boy whispered, his eyes closing.

"I know, but we have to get into contact with the girls. That will be our first step and hopefully, we can go from there. You rest. I'll do my best to find them,"

And the boy could barely manage an, "Okay," before sleep took him in.

'This takes me back,' Keiichiro thought. 'You would always drive yourself to your limits for the world…and the girls.'

Keiichiro gathered the boy in his arms and made his way back to Ryou's room, careful not to wake him as he moved up the stairs, out of the basement.

* * *

_Sorry this is so short...And again I apologize for the lateness... I didn't think work could take up so much time, not to mention....the dreaded SCHOOL! But meh, at least I got this out. I'm glad things are moving, albeit slowly._


End file.
